First ever L’Oréal Hackathon helps OSB students put their best face forward

11/28/2018

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OSB students recently had the opportunity to test their marketing skills and compete for a trip to Paris through the first ever L’Oréal Hackathon held on November 2, 2018. The digital convention was organized to help students improve their business knowledge and learn how to better use tools, information and frameworks to create and execute impactful, consumer-centric and efficient digital campaigns.

Six student teams competed in the unique competition by analyzing a case study of the company Kiehl’s and investigating how to increase corporate brand awareness across Lebanon. The challenge focused on building visibility without straying from the company’s existing model. Kiehl’s was purchased by the L'Oréal Group in 2000 and currently has more than 250 retail stores worldwide.

Winning team members Sarah Khoustekian, Daniela Hayek, Ali Shana’a, Joelle Lahoud, Reem Masri, and Mostafa Elfakhani will travel to the L’Oréal’s Digital incubator Station F in Paris on January 5-8, 2019. L’Oréal is the official sponsor of the exclusive beauty accelerator within Station F, the world’s biggest startup campus in Paris, designed to host a startup ecosystem under one roof.

“I'm really glad I was given the opportunity to be part of the L'Oréal Hackathon!” exclaimed team member Joelle Lahoud. “Getting the chance to work on a real-life case with my team was a wonderful and fun experience.”

Daniela Hayek added, "winning the L’Oreal Competition was a memorable experience. It was the perfect opportunity to apply the knowledge I acquired in my business courses to a real-life case. This would not have been possible if it was not for the meticulous training from the AUB Case Competition, which allowed me to develop a strategy and find an adequate implementation plan.”

“The Hackathon experience at L'Oreal was eye-opening to say the least,” concluded Reem Masri. “I am glad to have had the chance to apply the concepts and knowledge I learned in class to the real world. I've gained insights into what it takes to come up with a strong digital strategy.”

Leila Khauli who trained to student teams concluded: “This was a great learning experience for our students, they had the opportunity to apply hands on what we teach them in our courses and they really enjoyed themselves. The L’Oreal team was greatly impressed with their knowledge and their commitment. This is directly aligned with our OSB vision of enhancing the business experience rather than just education.”